Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-10-01

many nations in various parts of the earth
to adopt certain processes with view to
prevent that dust to dust" ultimatum
which all flesh must sooner or later expert
eace, and it is not unlikely that the abo-
riginal tribes of this Western Hemisphere
were animated by the same ideas which
prevailed on the other side of the globe.
Even among the Northern Indians
mummifying was frequently resorted to
for people of distinction. Beverly, who
wrote in 1922, says in his History of Nir-
ginia, with great squandering of capitals;
THE Indians are religious in preserving
the Corpses of their Kings and Rulers
after death, which they order in the fol-
lowing manner: First, they neatly fay
off the Skin as entirely as they can, Sitting
it only in the Back; then they pick all
the Flesh off from the Bones, as clean as
possibly, leaving the Sinews fastened to
the Bones, that they may preserve the
Joints together; then they dry the Bones
in the Sun, and put them into the Skin
again, which if the meantime has been
kept from drying or shrinking when the
Bones are placed right in the Skin, they
merely fill up the Nacuities with very fine
white Sand. After this they sew up the
Skin again and the Body looks as if the
Flesh had never been removed. They
take care to keep the Skin from shrinking,
by the help of little Oil or Grease,
which saves it also from Corruption The
Skin being thus prepared, they lay it in
an apartment for that purpose, upon a
large Shelf raised from the Floor This
Shelf is spread with Mats for the Corpse
10 pact m l-aa,N ~ f-o,,, tha
The Flesh they lay upon Hurdles in the
Sun to dry; and when it is thoroughly
dried, it is sewed up in Basket and sat
a. the foot of the Corpse to which it be-
longs. In this Place they also set up
Quioecos (idoD, which they believe will be
Guard to the Corpse. Here, Night and
Day, one or the other of the Priests must
give his Attendance, to take care of the
dead Bodies So great an Honor and Vener-
alton have these unpublished People for
their Princes, even after they are dead"
A still older writer improves upon this
North American Indian
RECEIPT FOR MAKING MUSlNIGEs
In the quaint phraseology of his times.
Says he: "Their bodies are first boweled,
then dried till very dry, and so about the
most of their joynts and necks they hang
bracelets or chains of copper and such like,
as they use to wear. Their insides they
stuff with beads, matches and such trash.
Then they lappe them very carefully in
white skins, and so rowle them in mats for
their winding-sheets. And in the tombe,
which is an arch made of mats, they lay
them orderly. What remaineth of this
kind of wealth their kings have, they set
at then feet in baskets. The buriale
ended, the women being painted all their
faces with blacke cole and oyle, doe sit
twenty-four hours in their houses, mourn
ing and lamenting by turpes, with such
yelling and bowling as may expresse their
great passions"
In Alaska, up to comparatively modern
times, the dead have been mummifed.
W. III. Dali, in his recent work on the
northwest coast, tells us that within the
last half century bodies have been eviscer-
rated, cleansed from fatty matters in run
ming water, dried and placed in cases,
wrapped in fur and woven grasses The
body was usually doubled up into the
smallest compass, and the mummy-ca
suspended, so as not to touch the ground,
in some convenient rock shelter. Some
times, however, the prepared body was
placed in a life-like position, dressed and
armed. Some were made to look as if
engaged in congenial occupation, such as
hunting, fishing, sewing, etc With them
were also placed effigies of the animals
they were pursuing, while the hunter was
decked in his wooden armor and provided
with an enormous mask, all ornamented
with feathers and countless variety of
wooden pendants, colored in gay patterns.
All the Alaska mummies wear masks, so
arranged that the wearers if erect, could
only see the ground at his feet. These
were also worn at their religious dances,
from the belief that the spirit which was
supposed to animate temporary idol was
fatal to whoever might look upon it while
so occupied. Probably an extension of this
idea led to the masking of those who had
gone TO
THE LAND OF SPIRITS,
And may also account for the silver masks
found the other day upon the Aztec mum
mics in Arizona.
To this day the Alertian Islanders en-
balm dead men with dried grass and moss,
burving them in their best attire, in sit
ting posture, and decorating the tomb with
colored mats, embroidery and painting.
With women they use much less ceremony.
A mother will keep her dead child, thus
imperfectly embalmed, in her own hut for
months, washing it continually, till at last
the intolerabie stencil reconciles her to
parting with it.
While on this gruesome subject it may
be mentioned, merely asa matter of curl
| osity that Cary's translation of Herodotus
describes the novel manner in which the
Macrobrian Ethiopians preserved their
dead. He says that their sepulchers were
all prepared from crystal in the following
way: When the body had been dried,
after the fashion of the Egyptians, they
plastered it all over with gypsum, and
then painted it to resemble life as nearly as
possible. Then they put it into hollow
column of crystal, which was easily ar
ranged, and could be dug up in abundance
Whereabouts. The body, being in the mid
! die of the transparent column, was plainly
| to be seen, and it did not emit an unpleas-
ant odor or become in any way offensive.
The nearest relatives kept the column in
their houses for a year or more, offering to
| to 1t the first fruits and performing sacri-
fees before it, after which time they car
ried it out and placed it somewhere near
the city.
This appears to have been an improve
ment on any of the modes above described,
for even the Egyptian mummies could
only be seen in 'front.' the back being COW
cred by box or coffin, while the Ethio-
plan bodies, snug in their columns of glass,
could be seen all around.
FANNIE. B. WARD.